Day 40: Repvag to Skarsvag

August 10, 2024

THE Notorious Tunnel

“What do you know about THE tunnel?” we ask Olaf at dinner last night…and every cyclist that we can going south…and in cycling journals. Even when we get to THE tunnel, two German cyclists emerge. “How cold is it?” we ask, “9 C, you’ll be alright with what you have on,” he says to Rachel. Rachel has her “outfit” of leggings and 2 smartwool shirts. Patrick only puts on his jacket. THE tunnel is 6850 meters long and goes under the sea to depth of 212 meters.

So with trepidation of THE tunnel and a second tunnel ahead of us, we set out early. The road continues to hug the coastline of the fjord with climbs over the jutting hills. The light tailwind is helping. After about 30 kilometers we reach THE tunnel. We are prepared to have extra clothing easily available and put on some extra layers. The first part we descend for about 2 kilometers at a 9% grade. “I forgot to put in my earplugs,” Patrick says about half way through. “They really help with the noise,” Rachel encourages him to put the earplugs in. Once we reach the bottom there is a flat section and then a gradual climb starts. On the way down it kept getting colder and we can see our breath. After about four kilometers the climb steepens and Rachel is finally unable to keep cycling about 2km from the end. There is a wide enough “sidewalk” and we push the bikes to get outside the tunnel.

Patrick finds a treasure just in time with only a few more days cycling in Norway. First it is unclear what country this is from, but it appears a sticker is obscuring the top left corner.....

Two German cyclist just out of the tunnel, stop and share information

I bike Boise sticker added to the sign (under the m.u)

The wind changes with the way the road turns, sometimes a strong crosswind blows us around, and when we emerge from the tunnel, we have a headwind. The second tunnel is 4.4km length with a shoulder that eventually becomes rough. There is a high point midway and we exit the tunnel riding on the road downhill.

We reach Honningsvag just as a giant cruise ship is entering the harbor. The REMA 1000 grocery store is just at the junction where turning left will take us to Nordkapp. As we roll into the parking lot, the German couple that we saw on the road a couple days ago are there ready to set off. They took the Finnmark bus from Olderfjord today. Patrick asked about how easy it is to catch the bus….”very easy” the man says. Our plan is to take the bus back to Olderfjord on Monday. As we start the hill climb, many busses pass us and Patrick observes, “These must be taking the people from the cruise ship to the Northcape.”

After shopping, loading the supplies in the panniers and a sandwich for lunch, we set off for Skarsvag, the closest town to the Northcape. There is a 6km climb with sections at 8%. The first part goes ok as we wind our way up the hill. It would go better if the wind cooperated in helping us. There are sections Rachel pushes the bike, and the hill just keeps going and going. Almost at the top we run into the German couple again. The downhill isn’t all downhill but it is a welcomed sight to end the day. But the ride will not be over. After we rest, we’ll ride to the Cape tonight.

The long hill out of Honningsvag finally wins and Rachel pushes the bike

At Skarsvag junction, we see the Red cabins we made a reservation for today and a rest day tomorrow. Patrick continues to the reception that is a bit further on. The cabins are nice; there are plenty of facilities including a kitchen and a restaurant. We decided to eat a nice meal at the restaurant tomorrow night, this evening we have another sweet and sour chicken rice frozen dinner.

We will cycle up to the Northcape tonight to see the sun set at 1030.

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Today's ride: 75 km (47 miles)
Total: 2,012 km (1,249 miles)

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